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Women in a Man’s World: An Examination of Women’s Leadership Work in the ‘Extremely Gendered’ Organisation of Men’s Football in England.
Get PDFFramed by the theory of ‘extremely gendered’ organisations, this thesis explores women's access to and experiences of leadership in men's professional club football and football governing bodies in England in the 'new' football era (late 1980s – present). Informed by feminist approaches to Constructivist Grounded Theory, I employed a qualitatively driven multimethod approach to data collection and analysis. First, I conducted archival research at the National Football Museum to gather data on the types of leadership roles women have held in football in the new era. I further collected data from the gender pay gap reports of football organisations to gain insight into current gender inequalities. Finally, I conducted biographic interviews with twenty-three women who have worked in football leadership.
My findings demonstrate that, despite occupying a significant number of leadership roles in football, women's access to the most powerful roles has been limited in the new football era. Specifically, women's leadership work has been largely peripheral to the core organisational function. Applying the theory of 'extremely gendered' organisations, I argue that core roles – roles with direct influence over and access to male footballers and the field of play– are the most symbolically important to preserving football's masculine character. Thus, having women in core leadership roles threatens men's 'natural' claim to football. I further contend that women’s acceptance in football leadership is conditional upon cultivating an ideal worker/ideal woman identity. Applying the concept of the ideal worker, I find that women are granted entry if they have insider status, i.e., they share the same racial, class, and professional characteristics as men in football. Moreover, I find that motherhood is incompatible with the boundaryless work cultures of football. Thus, women must remain childfree or minimise the impact of motherhood on their careers to keep their senior positions. Women must also perform 'respectable business femininity' to ensure their seniority. Crucially, I argue that the pressure to perform under the glow of the sportlight harms women. However, I also find that women use their positions to defend and challenge football from within. By considering agency as a social practice, I argue that women perform agentive acts of 'tempered radicalism' to quietly resist and challenge the extremely gendered regime of football. However, I find that this is additional physical and emotional labour for women. Nonetheless, women's reasons for leaving football are not always linked to the pressures of being a woman in a man's world. Instead, women are compelled to leave football to pursue an authentic life, free from the corruption and greed that has come to characterise the football industry. In this regard, leaving football was the ultimate act of agency.
I conclude that gender equality efforts must move beyond numerical measures of equality to address the peripheral and conditional positioning of women in football leadership. I argue that this requires a reimaging of the football industry, a reimagining that fundamentally disrupts the masculine blueprint upon which football was designed and rids football of its unscrupulous reputation
Synthesis strategies to 3-alkyl-2-methoxy pyrazines
Get PDFPyrazines are a class of heterocyclic compounds with multiple industrial applications spanning the flavours, fragrance, and pharmaceutical industries. The investigation of new synthetic routes leading to improved safety, efficiency and cost are advantageous to large scale synthesis in each of these sectors. One of our laboratories principle ambitions is to establish generic methodology that allows access to a wide range of novel heterocyclic cores such as pyrazines. To develop this chemistry, we selected three exemplifying structures namely, 2-butyl-3-methoxypyrazine, 2-propyl-3-methoxypyrazine, and 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine, with the eventual aim of enabling large scale production.
Prior to describing the synthesis of these compounds, a background literature review of current pyrazine preparation is provided. This includes the unique odour characters of this family, their application in the flavour and fragrance area and biological impacts as semiochemicals. A more comprehensive pyrazine natural formation also provided some insights and data to estimate the reaction conditions and starting materials required for the new synthesis.
The retrosynthesis of 2-alkoxy-3-methoxypyrazines is shown in the abstract figure. Firstly, the determination of key variables relating to yield based upon a known synthetic route suggested by Seifert et al. in 1970, was investigated.[1] Further literature sources were also reviewed to identify improvements for each step of the originally established scheme. Overall, around 50% yield of the selected target 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyraizne were obtained and under milder reaction conditions. Secondly, a new route was considered for the synthesis of 2-isobutyl-3-methxoypyrazine via condensation of α,β-dicarbonyl and of α,β-diamine compounds. The method was based upon an approach by Ghosh et al. published in 2011.[2] The scope of this route was analysed and was adjusted to enable us to prepare 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazines via a novel aromatisation procedure
From low dimensions to full configuration space: Generalising models for nonadiabatic molecular dynamics
Get PDFThis thesis aims to bridge the development of nonadiabatic dynamics methods and their application for studies of real molecular systems.
First, this work explores fundamental concepts of photochemistry by investigating two different pictures, arising from the Born-Oppenheimer and the exact factorisation representation. Based on a simplistic model, a photochemical experiment from the excitation up to the formation of photoproducts is simulated. This study then compares the Born-Oppenheimer and exact factorisation representations of the processes. Subsequently, the influence of the Born-Oppenheimer picture for approximate nonadiabatic dynamics is investigated on two-dimensional model systems around conical intersections. The effects of neglected couplings and geometric phase are evaluated for ab initio multiple spawning (AIMS), a method for nonadiabatic molecular dynamics based on classically moving Gaussians.
Afterwards, this work introduces a standardised test set of molecules to connect between tests of newly developed nonadiabatic dynamics methods on one-dimensional model systems and their intended application to full-dimensional molecules. Inspired by the widely used one-dimensional Tully models, three molecules are selected to form the molecular Tully models, which undergo similar photophysical processes, but in a high-dimensional space. In addition, the recently proposed stochastic-selection AIMS framework is also tested on two molecules undergoing ring-opening reactions to explore the strengths and limitations of the method.
Finally, a direct comparison between experimental and computational results is presented. The photochemistry of 2(5H)-thiophenone is probed during and after the initial ring opening using time-resolved photoelectron spectroscopy. Static and dynamic calculations unravel the photoprocesses and identify a variety of photoproducts. Using the computational results, the experimental signal can be translated to insights into the ongoing photochemistry.
Overall, this thesis aims to bring models in nonadiabatic dynamics in a real-world context. This work contributes to facilitating the transfer of new nonadiabatic dynamics methods towards the study of molecules in their full dimensionality
Evaluation of Metacognitive and Self-Regulatory Programmes for Learning, Pedagogy and Policy in Tertiary EFL Contexts
Get PDFIn the past few decades, numerous attempts have been made to promote thinking skills and improve learning standards. Among these efforts, thinking skills have been widely advocated in higher education policy and practice. For this reason, the notion of metacognitive and self-regulatory development has been extensively applied in various educational contexts, including English language education. Metacognitive and self-regulatory development is perceived to play an essential role in regulating reflective thinking, learning and agency. Emerging evidence also suggests that metacognitive and self-regulatory development is associated with improved learning outcomes.
To examine the existing evidence on the impact of metacognitive interventions in tertiary English as a Foreign Language (EFL) contexts, a systematic review was conducted. For this purpose, a priori review protocol was developed to minimise bias in identifying, screening and including studies for quality assessment and synthesis. The results from a meta-analysis indicate the potential of the metacognitive approach for EFL learning. However, the evidence remains inconclusive due to the limitations in the included studies. The findings from a thematic synthesis highlight the vital role of explicit instruction, clear pedagogical sequencing and the regulation of skills, rather than mere teaching about metacognition, for successful metacognitive development programmes.
Informed by the findings of the systematic review and a pilot study, the main study in the thesis was designed to assess the effectiveness of a metacognitive intervention on students’ learning and metacognitive awareness. The study design is a cluster randomised controlled trial conducted with a target group of approximately 800 tertiary Thai EFL learners in the southernmost areas of Thailand. They were faced with a new education policy challenge requiring students to pass a standardised English test to satisfy the additional graduation criteria. The study included fourteen classes, twelve of which were randomly allocated as either an intervention or a control group. The other two non-randomised clusters were included for comparison. Standardised English tests and student questionnaires were used to collect data for the main outcomes. Classroom observations and interviews were conducted for process evaluation. Secondary data analysis and regression analysis were also included to gain more insights into the role of metacognition and self-regulation in EFL learning.
The results suggest that the intervention group made more progress in the English language than their non-intervention peers. The intervention seems to offer more benefits to lower proficiency students than the more advanced ones. However, the impact of the intervention on metacognitive awareness had ambiguous results. The process evaluation describes both the positive features and the drawbacks of the intervention. The findings from multimethod analyses provide some valuable implications for learning, pedagogy and policy development
A Beautiful Mind: The Knowledge of Christ According to St. Bonaventure – Towards a New Reading of The Seraphic Doctor’s Thought on Faith and Reason
Get PDFWhilst lost to the Latin West since the end of the Patristic era, the full reintroduction of peripatetic philosophy – more commonly known as “Aristotelianism” – into Christian Europe during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries fundamentally challenged and reshaped the medieval interpretation of the relationship between faith and reason. The subject of much debate, the place of St. Bonaventure – the “Seraphic Doctor” – within the narrative of Aristotelianism’s assimilation into the Latin West, and his attitude towards philosophy and natural reason in general, has divided scholarly opinion for nearly a century. Where for some, Bonaventure is an ardent critic of Aristotle who rejects peripatetic philosophy from his very first contact with it; for others, by contrast, he is a respectful – though not uncritical – pupil of the Greek philosopher. Having generated significant disagreement amongst some of the most eminent Bonaventurian scholars – including Étienne Gilson, Fernand Van Steenberghen and Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI – contemporary scholarship has failed to reach a consensus as to the Seraphic Doctor’s attitude towards Aristotelianism and philosophy. Subsequently, a notable amount of confusion has also arisen as to what constitutes an authentically “Bonaventurian” reading of the relationship between faith and reason; indeed, it is sometimes asked if such a thing exists at all. By using Bonaventure’s much neglected writings on Christ’s knowledge as an interpretative tool for his statements on Aristotelianism and philosophy, this study seeks to offer the basis for a fresh interpretation of the Seraphic Doctor’s thought on faith and reason; one which explains both the subtleties and apparent contradictions at work within his attitude towards peripatetic philosophy, whilst identifying the driving force behind the anti-Aristotelian narrative which develops throughout his works
Developing a Constitutionally Appropriate Method of Circumventing Statutory Ouster Clauses
Get PDFThe Court's approach towards circumventing ouster clauses has varied dramatically over time. The original focus of the Court was on whether the body in question had 'jurisdiction' to make a decision. If they were found to be acting outside of their jurisdiction, this would justify circumventing the statutory ouster clause on the grounds that the body was acting ‘ultra vires’, and as such against the will of Parliament. This thesis has found ‘ultra vires’ to be an inappropriate theoretical foundation for judicial review, in its inability to properly delineate the boundaries of administrative power. Furthermore, the focus on ‘jurisdiction’ as central to the standard of judicial review has been criticised for its narrow and inflexible nature, and its failure to respect the unique contexts of each individual case.
In the later cases of Cart and Privacy International, the courts rejected the narrow focus on ‘jurisdiction’ and ‘ultra vires’, favouring a more holistic approach to delineating the boundaries of judicial review. This approach embodies the modified ultra vires theory, which will be shown to provide the most appropriate basis for judicial review. It works to balance the intention of Parliament as evident in statute with the implied intention of Parliament to confer power within the boundaries of the Rule of Law, justifying the recent controversial decision in Privacy International
Applications of noncommutative intersection forms to linking
Get PDFWe construct a link homotopy invariant for three-component spherical link maps which is a generalisation of the Kirk invariant for two-component spherical link maps. We then construct an invariant for three-component annular link maps and establish that there is a relationship between the three-component annular link map invariant and the three-component link map invariant. We show the link map invariant can detect non-trivial three-component link maps which become trivial up to link homotopy when a component is removed. We establish that there exist link maps where each component has the same image in but are not link homotopic, unlike in the two-component case. Using the link map invariant we construct an invariant which is analogous to Milnor's triple linking number, and show that they can be used to distinguish different link maps. We provide a method for calculating our invariant for an infinite family of three-component annular link maps and deduce a computation for link maps and detect infinitely many three-component link maps which have vanishing Kirk invariants.
Next we prove that the Blanchfield form on a closed, orientable, connected three-manifold can be computed in terms of the intersection form of a four-manifold which it bounds. We aim to do this using the weakest assumptions possible, as similar results in the literature have been shown but proofs are often imprecise or make more assumptions than are needed
Materials Analysis Using a THz Imaging System Based on Atomic Vapour
Get PDFThis thesis studies the response of the interaction between Rydberg atomic vapour and a THz frequency field. When Caesium atoms at room temperature
are excited to a Rydberg state using three infrared lasers and a 0.55 THz field
resonant with the 14P3/2 → 13D5/2 transition is applied, the atoms respond
by emitting a green optical fluorescence corresponding to the 13D5/2 → 6P3/2
decay. This response is exploited to investigate the absorption coefficient for
different polymer materials that transmit well in the THz frequency range
using the Beer–Lambert law. We calibrate the system to obtain a measure
of THz intensity. As the THz imaging system is highly sensitive to environmental changes, and to show that our results are consistent, we provide a
comparison of results between our atomic detection method and a commercial
thermal power meter. Additionally, we measure the absorption coefficient of
the same materials at a frequency of 1.1 THz, and the results are compared
with those measured at 0.55 THz. The THz imaging system is also used to
perform some experiments in order to demonstrate its effectiveness in real-world applications. The system provides an interesting image contrast in the
case of a sample containing two different polymer materials measured at two
THz frequencies. The result is a proof-of-concept that multispectral THz imaging can provide additional information and is motivation to improve our THz
imaging system by introducing a dual-species THz imager. We also investigate
the polarisation spectroscopy of an excited-state transition of rubidium vapour
at room temperature as a step towards a rubidium THz imaging system. The
narrow dispersive signal produced by this spectroscopy technique is ideal for
laser frequency stabilisation of excited-state transitions
Energy dissipation in granular materials in DEM simulations
Get PDFSoil has generally been treated as a continuum from as early as the eighteenth century. Since then the analysis of soil behaviour in practical engineering analyses and development of constitutive models has depended on a continuum assumption. However, in order to gain a deeper understanding of the behaviour of soils and their particulate nature, there is a need to move from continuum mechanics to discrete models. Such modelling is possible using the Discrete Element Method (DEM). In this thesis an open source DEM particle simulation software, LIGGGHTS is used to study the relationships between grain scale parameters and energy dissipation in granular media in one-dimensional compression. In order to measure the dissipated energy, changes in energy terms are traced at every time step and the principle of energy conservation applied. The influence of particle size distribution, initial void ratio, and inter-particle friction coefficient on energy dissipation are studied and discussed. It is shown that increasing the coefficient of uniformity decreases the energy dissipated; lowering the initial voids ratio results in steeper energy dissipation curves; and a higher inter-particle coefficient of friction yields more energy dissipation. It is hoped that the knowledge gained of the relationship between grain scale parameters and energy dissipation can be built upon to formulate constitutive relationships within the hyperplasticity framework. It is envisioned that relating grain scale parameters to constitutive models will allow the formulation of models that are purely based on the micro-mechanics of granular media
Towards a National Security Analysis Approach via Machine Learning and Social Media Analytics
Get PDFVarious severe threats at national and international level, such as health crises, radicalisation, or organised crime, have the potential of unbalancing a nation's stability. Such threats impact directly on elements linked to people's security, known in the literature as human security components. Protecting the citizens from such risks is the primary objective of the various organisations that have as their main objective the protection of the legitimacy, stability and security of the state.
Given the importance of maintaining security and stability, governments across the globe have been developing a variety of strategies to diminish or negate the devastating effects of the aforementioned threats. Technological progress plays a pivotal role in the evolution of these strategies. Most recently, artificial intelligence has enabled the examination of large volumes of data and the creation of bespoke analytical tools that are able to perform complex tasks towards the analysis of multiple scenarios, tasks that would usually require significant amounts of human resources.
Several research projects have already proposed and studied the use of artificial intelligence to analyse crucial problems that impact national security components, such as violence or ideology. However, the focus of all this prior research was examining isolated components. However, understanding national security issues requires studying and analysing a multitude of closely interrelated elements and constructing a holistic view of the problem.
The work documented in this thesis aims at filling this gap. Its main contribution is the creation of a complete pipeline for constructing a big picture that helps understand national security problems. The proposed pipeline covers different stages and begins with the analysis of the unfolding event, which produces timely detection points that indicate that society might head toward a disruptive situation. Then, a further examination based on machine learning techniques enables the interpretation of an already confirmed crisis in terms of high-level national security concepts.
Apart from using widely accepted national security theoretical constructions developed over years of social and political research, the second pillar of the approach is the modern computational paradigms, especially machine learning and its applications in natural language processing
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